Characteristics of Compression Stockings May Impact Compliance

HealthDay News — For patients after deep vein thrombosis (DVT), the most important characteristics of elastic compression stocking (ECS) therapy are risk reduction of post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS) and ability to put on the ECS without assistance, according to a study published in the Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis.

Annemieke C. Bouman, MD, from the Maastricht University Medical Center in the Netherlands, and colleagues conducted a discrete choice experiment in patients three months after DVT who were enrolled in the IDEAL DVT study. The trial compared two years of ECS therapy with individually tailored duration of ECS therapy for PTS prevention. Each patient was presented with nine unlabeled, forced choice sets of two hypothetical types of ECS.

Three hundred of 369 invited patients responded. The researchers found that PTS risk reduction and putting on the ECS were the most important determinants of preference. Patients were prepared to increase therapy duration by one year for a 10% additional PTS risk reduction. Patients were prepared to accept a 29% increase in PTS risk if they were able to put on the ECS themselves. With respect to education level the preferences were heterogeneous.

“Risk reduction of PTS and the ability to put on the ECS without help are the most important characteristics of ECS therapy,” the authors write. “These rather simple interventions could improve compliance.”